Newtown Action Alliance Statement on 3 Deadly Mass Shooting Incidents in America in the Past Week. Urges State & Federal Elected Leaders in America to Pass Comprehensive Gun Control Policies
For Immediate Release
August 5, 2019
Contact:
John Kelley
917-679-6475
Newtown Action Alliance Statement on 3 Deadly Mass Shooting Incidents in America in the Past Week
Urges State & Federal Elected Leaders in America to Pass Comprehensive Gun Control Policies
Newtown, CT - Po Murray, Chairwoman of Newtown Action Alliance, released the following statement in response to the three deadly mass shooting incidents during the past week:
· Saturday, August 3, 2019: A 24-year-old male killed 9 people and injured 31 others with a legally purchased .223-caliber rifle (similar to an AK-47) and 100-round drum magazines in 24 seconds at a nightlife district in downtown Dayton, Ohio.
· Saturday, August 3, 2019: A 21-year-old male with white supremacist ideation killed 20 people and injured 26 others with an AK-47-style assault rifle, high capacity magazines and 8M3 ammunition in Walmart in El Paso, Texas.
· Sunday, July 28, 2019: A 19-year-old male killed 3 people and injured 13 others with an AK-47-type assault rifle and high capacity magazines at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in Gilroy, California.
“Our hearts are breaking for Dayton, El Paso and Gilroy. In less than a week, 32 people were killed and 70 people were injured in three mass shootings perpetrated by gunmen who used assault weapons and high capacity magazines in three communities in three different states in our nation. As of this morning, there have been 255 mass shooting incidents since January 1, 2019 and more than 100 people are killed by guns every single day everywhere in America.
We are devastated by these mass shooting incidents but we are not shocked. For nearly seven years after the Sandy Hook mass shooting incident, we have warned all Americans, particularly elected politicians across the nation, that if a mass shooting can happen in Sandy Hook then it can happen anywhere in the United States. We have implored the President, all Members of Congress, Governors and State Representatives to strengthen the state and federal gun laws to keep our families and our communities safe.
Tragically, the President has not only failed to take action after many mass shooting incidents on his watch, but his racist rhetoric has fueled mass shooters. Today he blamed this weekend’s shootings on “mentally ill monsters,” recycling the gun lobby’s disproved vilification of a convenient minority. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has blocked the background check bill that was passed out of the House of Representatives months ago despite the fact that 97% of Americans support universal background checks on gun sales. Many states such as California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and other states have taken action to protect their citizens from gun violence but our state borders are porous. Too many elected state leaders have stood with the NRA and blocked common sense gun control measures. Governor Greg Abbot took no action after 3,513 Texans were killed by guns in 2017 and after the heartbreaking Sutherland Springs and Santa Fe mass shooting incidents in his state.
Nearly seven years ago, Newtown endured a day of terror similar to Dayton, El Paso, and Gilroy after a gunman with an AR-15 and high capacity magazines killed 20 children and six children in less than five minutes. A federal universal background check legislation and patchwork of state gun laws will not be enough to stop the carnage. Unless Congress and Donald Trump enact a comprehensive set of federal gun control measures that will end all forms of gun violence, our nation will continue to be plagued by this man-made gun violence crisis, unique to America.
We know that our elected leaders can do more to end gun violence in America. Elected leaders from all states can pass laws similar to the ones passed in Connecticut after the Sandy Hook tragedy. Congress and the President can reject white nationalism and the NRA’s guns for anyone everywhereagenda, and pass the following gun control measures outlined in GVPedia’s Denver Accord Principles and Policies: https://www.newtownactionalliance.org/our-policy-priorities.”
The Denver Accord: Principles and Policies:
● Guns do not make us safer.
● Gun violence in America is a pervasive public health crisis that demands substantial policy solutions and well-funded programs that effectively reduce gun violence.
● Equitable and just enforcement of gun laws is paramount.
● Everyone has the right to live free from violence.
Section I: Put Safety First
LICENSING
REGISTRATION
EXTREME RISK PROTECTION ORDER (ERPO)
SAFE STORAGE
REDUCE FIREARM LETHALITY
Section II: Let Laws Work
STRENGTHEN AND ENFORCE EXISTING GUN LAWS
Section III: Protect Community
REDUCE PRESENCE OF FIREARMS IN PUBLIC SPACES
FUND AND PROLIFERATE COMMUNITY BASED SOLUTIONS
POLICE REFORM
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Newtown Action Alliance (http://alliance.newtownaction.org/) is a Newtown-based, national grassroots organization formed after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings. Our mission is to achieve the steady and continuous reduction of gun violence through legislative and cultural changes.